New York:: Harcourt, Brace and Howe,, 1920.. First edition; early type batter.. publisher's blue cloth stamped in orange in dust jacket.. Spine a little faded; a little watermarking to front board; else an unworn copy with the front panel, back panel, front flap and part of the back flap of a 1920s version of the dust jacket. . 8vo,.

Synopsis

Main Street by Sinclair Lewis is a satirical novel concerning small town America. The story follows Carol Milford, a liberal and free-spirited woman, as she marries Dr. William Kennicott and settles in his hometown of Gopher Prairie, Minnesota. Upon arrival, Carol is shocked by the conservatism and general backwardness of Gopher Prairie—which is loosely based on Lewis’ hometown of Sauk Centre, Minnesota. The residents of Gopher Prairie seem more interested in gossip than larger cultural or social issues, which frustrates Carol. In various attempts to reform the town, she implements one improvement project after another, all of them ending in failure. In the end, Carol realizes that her frustrations with the individuals of the town should really have been directed towards its institutions and that although she was been beaten, she has kept the faith. Lewis initially seems to be attacking his small town roots in the novel, but his satire is double-edged; Main Street is not only a critique of simple townspeople, but also of the superficial intellectuals who look down on them. Main Street was not expected to be a commercial success. Lewis anticipated selling 10,000 copies; Harcourt, Brace and Howe anticipated 20,000. In the first six months of 1921, Main Street sold over 180,000 copies. Main Street is ranked 68th on Modern Library’s “100 Best” English-language novels of the 20th century. The novel was initially awarded the Pulitzer Prize for literature that year, but the Board of Trustees overturned the decision and gave the prize to Edith Wharton for The Age of Innocence instead. (In 1925, Lewis rejected the Pulitzer Prize for Arrowsmith because he felt that he had deserved the prize for Main Street.)

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Details

Bookseller: Jeffrey H. Marks Rare Books (US)
Bookseller's Inventory #: 62370
Title: Main Street: The Story of Carol Kennicott.
Author: LEWIS, Sinclair
Format/Binding: Publisher's blue cloth stamped in orange in dust jacket.
Book Condition: Used - Spine a little faded; a little watermarking to front board; else an unworn copy with the front panel, back panel, front flap and
Edition: First edition; early type batter.
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Harcourt, Brace and Howe,
Place of Publication: New York:
Date Published: 1920.
Pages: 451 pp.
Size: 8vo,

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Jeffrey H. Marks Rare Books

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Jeffrey H. Marks Rare Books

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Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:

Spine: The outer portion of a book which covers the actual binding. The spine usually faces outward when a book is placed on a shelf....
Jacket: Sometimes used as another term for dust jacket, a protective and often decorative wrapper, usually made of paper which wraps...
Cloth: "Cloth-bound" generally refers to a hardcover book with cloth covering the outside of the book covers. The cloth is stretched...